Arround ICO Review: A Project Dedicated to Bringing Augmented Reality to The Masses

Augmented Reality (AR) represents one of today’s most innovative markets Goldman Sachs analysts as well as researchers at Juniper Research agree that the AR niche could grow by up to 100 times over the next the next half-decade.

Arround is a blockchain-based project that works towards the creation of an ecosystem that will support different Augmented Reality projects across the globe. With the project’s ICO only a couple of days away, the question on most people’s mind is how good Arround is as a product and as an investment opportunity. Walk with me then into the belly of the beast and find out the ins and outs of Arround.io.

Project Overview

Arround is a decentralized platform for augmented reality. It is an ecosystem that offers a digital environment optimized for the creation and sharing of AR projects and experiences. Around brings together 4 elements; a marketplace for AR, a universal advertising network, a next-gen AR map and a social platform.

By providing users with tools for harnessing big data and building creative campaigns through AR, the project hopes to bring a new way for advertisers to engage their target consumers.

The project makes it easy for a smartphone user to enjoy, create and share AR experience on their phones. This feature will also be extended to smart glass users in the future.

Developers of AR-based applications can use Arround to monetize their apps and engage with the public. The robust SDK and API on the platform provides developers with an excellent testing environment for AR applications.

The project will crowdsource a 3D spatial map of the Earth to support AR-oriented activities that require pinpoint accuracy of the environment in the real world.

Augment Reality Now and In Future

Augmented Reality (AR) is unlike Virtual Reality (VR) in various ways. While Virtual Reality technology allows for the creation of environments that are wholly artificial, Augmented reality uses the existing environment and merely overlays new features onto it.

AR, therefore, doesn’t replace the real world. It’s created to complement it. As such, special helmets or rooms aren’t always required for one to experience Augmented Reality. AR is, in essence, a mobile technology that enhances existing real-world events and features.

AR has been around since 1990, but not much had been done to commercialize it until ARKit was built for iOS and ARCore for Android.

Various companies have already been established in the AR/VR niche, and some have realized market capitalization of hundreds of million dollars. For example, Magic Leap’s capitalization is USD 6 billion.

A University of Liverpool’s study shows that AR will have a profound impact on individuals born after 1995 (Generation Z). This Generation Z population, therefore, might become an augmented reality generation that adopts AR just as much as we have adopted smartphones today. If mainstream adoption continues, forecasts predict that by 2020, the AR market might be valued at $120 million and may grow to $198 billion by 2025.

How Will Arround Take Command of The AR Market

Arround.io is not the only player in the AR space. Other AR-focused projects such as Arcona, Spheroid Universe and TaDa Time are well-established in the AR niche. Therefore, Arround.io has devised the following strategies to give it an edge over its competition.

AR Social to Meet the Public’s Desire to Create and Interact with AR Content

Arround believes that there’s an unfulfilled demand for high-quality AR within the general public and by various businesses that want to incorporate AR into their marketing campaigns. Arround tries to meet this demand by introducing AR Social.

AR Social is a social network that focuses on augmented reality. Users on AR Social can create, view, and share AR content from their handheld devices such as tablets and smartphones. It also offers access to AR apps and other features such as GPS and Spatial Recognition technologies.

An In-Store AR Shopping Assistant has also been incorporated into Arround to generate discounts to customers as they choose what products to buy. The Arround App has an AR Camera that recognizes items by their packaging, logos, AR codes (QR code analogs). The AR shopping assistant can then use the information from the AR Camera, socio-demographic data and the user’s personal information to activate the best AR shopping experience for the user.

Arround Steps Away from The Saturated Mobile Advertising Channel

Mobile advertising is the most popular channel for digital advertising. It’s a channel that has come to involve cutthroat competition and an overwhelming supply of commercial offerings. This has inherently made users weary in various untold ways.

Arround, therefore, uses augmented reality to bring forth a new, intuitive way of reaching out to prospects and spreading campaign messages. The AR Store offers brand tools to publish both static and animate campaigns quickly and easily. AR AdNet further allows for campaign tracking.

AR Store provides a Ready Market for AR Creations

Developers who create or adapt content for AR will find that AR Store is a trustworthy marketplace where they can publish and sell their creations. The store will bring users unique content that can be placed in the real world. Users will also gain access to a multitude of other AR applications, games and virtual guides.

Arround Is A Backbone for Next Generation AR Developments

Crowd-sourcing and bounty incentives will be used to bring together developers who will create a next-generation 3D spatial AR Map. Developers can then integrate SLAM (Simultaneous Localization and Mapping) data to the spatial map to help them accurately place AR objects.

Arround’s Token Model

The ARR token has been adopted as the unit of exchange on the Arround platform. The token will be used in the following ways

Users will use the ARR token to buy or lease digital services and items from developers.

Commercial parties will use the ARR token to run ads and marketing campaigns.

The ARR token will be used to incentivize users to map their environments and contribute to the creation of a 3D spatial AR Map as well as a backbone network for augmented reality.

Third parties will pay to use the augmented reality backbone. Payments will be made via the ARR token.

Project Milestones

The project idea for Arround was born in 2016, and a business plan was written in 2017. MVP releases and advertising campaign launches occurred earlier on in 2018. The project ICO will be launched on 15th September 2018, and an alpha version will be released later on in the year.

Arround will be ported to Microsoft HoloLens and ODG Augmented Reality Glasses in 2019. The pilot project in the US will be launched in 2020 followed by expansion into other markets including China, Japan, North America, Korea, UAE, France, Germany, and Britain.

The Team Behind Arround Project

Neil Bryant Russell, CEO. He’s a seasoned internet startup manager, former CEO at Badoo.com and a graduate of UEA.

Evgeny Dobrovolsky, Founder & Chief Business Development Officer. He’s a serial entrepreneur in technology, a co-founder of Intalev, and the founder and CEO of Vladimir Textiles Holdings.

Artem Haritonov, Chief Technology Officer. He’s a leading app developer and blockchain specialist in Russia and a graduate of SPb SUT.

Arkady Yasashniy, Chief Financial Officer. He’s a renowned financial expert from Russia, a former National Standard Bank’s Head of Corporate Banking and the former VTB’s Managing Director.

Arround As an Investment Opportunity

Ratings for the various features of the Arround project

Trait

Rating

Idea

5/5

Excellent

Project App

5/5

Excellent

Team

5/5

Excellent

Finance

4/5

Good

Marketing

5/5

Excellent

Project Score

4.8/5

Excellent

Overall, Arround is a good idea built upon the premise that AR will one day become commonplace in our daily lives. We, therefore, think that the project may stand the test of time and become a success for the following reasons:

Arround taps in a vast reserve of unexploited advertising through augmented reality.

Growth forecasts are favorable towards augmented reality. The market is thus expected to become even bigger in the future

Arround offers offline retailers with a new way of improving the shopping experiences of their customers through a lens of an Augmented Reality Camera.

The platform promises to have exciting features that may be appealing to a vast variety of users including bloggers, online marketers, AR enthusiasts as well as business and enterprises looking for new ways to create ads and market campaigns.

Arround has already established a solid partnership base that includes big global brands such a Scania, Unilever and Wild Turkey Bourbon

Android and iOS MVPs are available, and so far, they deliver good functionality and usability